Abstract Gender
by Cyberweasel89
Summary: Walking Orihime home one night, Ichigo runs into a new enemy. Left female, he must adapt to a new body and new treatment from his friends. All while fighting to uncover the truth behind the events. IchiHime FemIchigo PostAizen NotCrack NotYuri
1. Prologue: Dizzy Up The Girl

Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach. Bleach is owned by Tite Kubo.

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Summary: A battle with an unusual enemy has left Ichigo female. Now he has to deal with being treated differently by his friends while trying to unravel the shady events.

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Rated T for light swearing, mentions of "feminine problems", focuses on sexuality, and general things from Chizuru. But note that this is not a yuri fanfic.

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Main Pairings:

Ichigo x Orihime (NOT YURI!)

Rukia x Renji

Uryuu x Nemu

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Bleach

Abstract Gender

By _Cyberweasel89_

**Prologue:** Dizzy Up The Girl

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"Crap. Dammit. Shit!"

"That's not how a young lady talks."

"Shut up!"

"I'm only kidding!"

"This is no time for humor! Now how do I get this thing on?"

"You're supposed to put it on backwards and hook it in the front, then spin it around."

"... Like this?"

"Yep!"

"..."

"What is it?"

"Ugh. I was just thinking that if that wasn't me in the mirror, I'd be pretty turned on."

"Ichigo!"

"Sorry, Inoue."

To think... it all happened so fast. And it wasn't that long ago. He would get the bastard that did this to him.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

"Thanks for walking me home, Kurosaki-kun."

"Hey, it's no trouble."

Silence as the two walked. Silence was a welcome replacement for the chaos of everyday life. In the months that followed Aizen's defeat and the eradication of the Espada, the full effects of the war had been realized. For some, it was a delayed realization. For others, it happened immediately. For some, it was a gradual realization, one new surprise at a time. For others, everything crashed down upon them at once. So many people had been affected by the war. People had died, been maimed to the point of crippling, or even gone insane. Major changes had been made to the structure of the Soul Society. New Captains had been appointed, if you could even call them 'captains' anymore.

Several of the shocks had hit Inoue Orihime close to home, but she had made peace with most of them. Even then, everyone these days involved with the Winter Wars needed an escape. Not running away, of course. Everyone just needed a place they could go that would take them away from the sadness of what was lost in the Winter Wars, what was taken by Aizen. Chad had become ever more focused on his music. Rukia was here and there, always ready to stop and chat when she made her frequent stops to Karakura Town, but Orihime had heard she was reading romantic manga as a means of distraction, at least when she wasn't strengthening her Bankai. Tatsuki, whose death hit Orihime particularly hard at first, was busy developing her Shinigami powers, but Orihime knew she would be back from Soul Society soon for a visit. Ishida... well, I guess you could say his keen intellect was as sharp as ever, but he generally didn't get around much without his new fiancé. He mostly resigned to reading nowadays, what with his lack of proper mobility. She hadn't seen Mizuiro for some time, but she knew where he was. He was no doubt still dating older women. Keigo, well... Orihime really didn't want to think about him right now. It was too painful. Right now, walking home with Ichigo... it was her escape. Even if it was silent, she felt content like this. She would occasionally glance over at the orange-haired Shinigami, walking with his arms behind his head and eyes focused forward. She had to wonder what was on his mind... Was it the offer? After his deeds in the Winter Wars, Ichigo had been offered the position of Captain of the Fourteenth Division, a future special-interest division, after he naturally dies. Of course, he would hopefully have a full lifetime to consider such a position, but she knew it was probably something that entered his conscious thoughts now and then.

A lot had happened over the last year. Rukia's arrival, the infiltration of Soul Society, the Arrancar assault, her rescue operation in Hueco Mundo, the winter wars, and countless other hardships. Orihime couldn't help but feel that all of them, as a group, accomplished a great deal. But she still felt like she didn't do much... Now everything felt like it was back the way it was, with them all in school, and yet part of her knew that the countless scars and permanent wounds ran deep. No amount of healing or correcting could give Ishida-san back his-

"So... how is Kuchiki-san?" the girl asked, finding her thoughts far too weighty to stand this silence.

"Same as always. It's hard to keep up with her. I gotta stay on my toes to keep her happy."

Orihime just smiled. "That's not unusual. That's how it is with most girlfriends."

The orange-haired Shinigami just grunted. But his usual scowl lessened, if only just slightly.

Despite his perpetual scowl and aloof yet indignant attitude, Orihime could tell that a lot was on his mind. She had known him long enough and been through enough with him to be able to see some of what was going on in his head, but not as much as Rukia could. Rukia could always tell exactly what he was thinking, and she always knew exactly what to do to snap him out of anything he was going through. It actually made her feel kind of...

The street lamp flickered and went dark. Ichigo jerked his arm out to halt the girl's steps.

"Hang on. Something's happening."

"What?" Orihime inquired, eyes widening in worry.

"Just wait. Stay still..."

The air seemed thick, like on ominous gloom was oppressing the area. It wasn't anywhere close to the force of Reiatsu. But it definitely was hinting at something...

Sure enough, the street light flickered back on, and a shadowed figure was standing there at the edge of the light.

"Good evening, Kurosaki Ichigo. Good evening, Inoue Orihime." Came a male voice, a bit scratchy sounding.

"Who are you?" the orange-haired Shinigami demanded.

"I am here to play a little game. Just a simple little game."

"A game?" Orihime questioned, but Ichigo shot her a look, silently telling her not to speak.

"Yes, just a harmless little game."

Ichigo narrowed his eyes. "What kind of game?"

The shadowed figure stepped further into the light, revealing an ashen gray Shinigami uniform with stitches covering it, as if it was sewn together from patches of gray cloth. The gray top hat upon his head matched his uniform perfectly, even complete with the same randomly sprawled stitches and sewing borders, which was currently tipped to shield his eyes from view. He was male, skinny, about the same height as Ichigo, but a little older, with spiky chestnut hair and fair skin. At his hip was a straight-bladed katana-like sword, sheathed in an ornate gilded scabbard. Strangely, the hilt seemed to have an odd round device attached to it. The man gripped the sword's hilt and gently drew it from its scabbard.

"Just a quick introductory game, is all." he declared with a sly smile full of pure white teeth, a playful tone to his scratchy voice.

As if rocketing from where he was standing, he lunged forward, his sword thrusting directly at Ichigo. The orange-haired Shinigami shoved Orihime out of the way and jerked to the side, narrowly avoiding the blade. Ichigo noticed that the round device on the hilt looked somewhat like the speedometer of a car. It had three sections on the gauge; red, yellow, and green; with an arrow currently in the middle of the red.

"Kurosaki-kun!" Orihime called from her position on the ground. Her skirt had bunched up around her hip, revealing her underwear, and the orange-haired Shinigami noticed the arrow in the gauge on the enemy's sword twitch slightly.

"I'll be fine, Inoue!"

Unfortunately, what with the recent peace, Ichigo didn't have Kon or any other method of ejecting himself from his body. He would have to fight this guy with just pure physical ability. His musings, however, were cut short when he scrambled backwards to avoid the enemy stabbing his sword down near his leg.

Ichigo jumped to his feet and lunged forward, aiming his fist at the enemy's face. The enemy merely leaned to the side to avoid the strike, and smacked Ichigo across the face. His resulting laughter was cut short when the orange-haired Shinigami kneed him in the stomach. As the enemy stumbled backwards, clutching his gut, Ichigo backed off to put some space between him and his foe.

"What the hell was that? Did you just slap me?"

Once the enemy got his wind back, he just grinned gleefully, lightly chuckling. "Oh, yes. I'm just toying with you. But after that blow to the stomach, I think I'll have to get serious."

The enemy seemingly vanished for a second, and Ichigo tilted his body to avoid a sword thrust. Then another sword thrust. The orange-haired Shinigami felt a barrage of consecutive sword thrusts coming at him, and he had to work hard to dodge each one. As Ichigo ducked to avoid one particular thrust, he felt the next one graze his cheek, leaving a shallow cut. He growled and jumped backwards to again put some distance between them.

The enemy backed away, giving the orange-haired Shinigami the chance to catch his breath.

"See this?"

Ichigo looked up to see the enemy pointing at his sword.

"This is my Zanpakutou, . And do you see what is on it? Your blood."

"Yeah, so what does that mean?" Ichigo retorted.

"That means the fun can really begin, my boy. Horuchuushaki! Gynocentralize!"

Ichigo braced himself for the enemy to release his Zanpakutou. But the straight-bladed sword with the gauge on the hilt stayed the same. Instead, Ichigo felt a sudden shift in his body's center of gravity. It was such a sudden shift that he nearly fell over had he not managed to catch himself. His clothes felt a lot looser, too. What the hell did this guy just do? The orange-haired Shinigami looked down at himself, shocked as confusion was replaced with awed realization.

He was looking down at a girl's body. He had the same skin tone, and he still felt that his hair was short and spiky, but he could clearly see that his body had changed to that of a girl's figure, with slender legs, a thin waist, round hips, and a sizeable bust comparable to that of Orihime. He had gotten noticeably shorter, too. So short, in fact, that his normally well-fitting school uniform's pants were threatening to fall off, while his shirt was hanging far farther than it had previously.

"What the hell?" He paused at the sound of his voice. It was more high-pitched, feminine, almost musical. "What the hell did you do to me, you bastard?"

The enemy giggled in quite the delighted manner. "Isn't it wonderful? You look so much more attractive now! Eee hee hee hee!"

Ichigo charged for the enemy, but soon tripped and fell flat on his face. "Ow! What the hell just happened?" To add insult to injury, his pants had fallen down to his knees as he fell. He stood up again and attempted to run again, but fell once more. His denial hoped the fall was because of the pants at his ankles, rather than what he feared...

"You see now, don't you? Females have different centers of gravity and proportions than males. With your body so different, you've completely lost the balance and grace you were so accustomed to! Isn't it just marvelous?"

The enemy walked forward and stood over Ichigo, who had pulled himself up on his arms. He swiped his sword horizontally at his now bosomy chest, leaving the orange-haired Shinigami with a cut shirt.

"Mmm... Such a lovely figure you have. So delectable! Too bad I have to kill you now."

"Tsubaki! Koten Zanshun! I reject!"

Ichigo was startled to see something pass right through the enemy's chest and right through his Zanpakutou, shattering the blade down to the hilt. He immediately fell to his knees, clutching the gaping hole just between his shoulder and chest.

"Ah! Pain! This pain! It's my blood! This pain! I LOVE IT!"

Orihime ran up to the orange-haired Shinigami and knelt by his side.

"Kurosaki-kun! Are you okay?" she asked, her voice shaky.

"Yeah! But that attack didn't finish him off." Ichigo commented, cringing at the sound of his musically feminine voice.

The enemy jumped backward, putting distance between himself and the two. "Hah! That was fun! I'd love to continue, but I can't very well fight with a broken Zanpakutou." He held up the hilt to caress it. "Poor Horuchuushaki. There there, poor girl. Ssh-ssh. It'll be okay. I know it hurts, but you'll be fine." He sheathed the hilt and what remained of the blade back in the scabbard at his hip, turning to gaze back over at Ichigo and Orihime with a glint in his now-visible green left eye. "I can't wait for the next time! But I have to go. Toodles!"

With that, he vanished, seeming to meld into the darkness just beyond the street lamp.

After several moments of silence, which shifted in and out of being awkward, Orihime turned back to the orange-haired Shinigami. "Kurosaki-kun! Are you alright?" she cried in alarm.

Ichigo just grunted. "Yeah, I'm fine." But he looked back down at his body. "You broke that guy's Zanpakutou. How come I'm still..." he couldn't bring himself to admit what happened by finishing his sentence...

Orihime's brow furrowed, biting her lip. "I don't know... but can you walk?"

"Yeah, of course." The orange-haired Shinigami responded pridefully. He stood, but wobbled violently and fell back down.

"Kurosaki-kun! You can't walk like this! Let me give you a hand."

Ichigo just sighed. "Fine. Dammit, that bastard said something about my balance being off."

The orange-haired Shinigami stood, putting his arm around Orihime's shoulder for support. The girl proceeded to lead them down the road. His pants were forgotten on the road, but his previously well-fitting shirt was like a long tunic now. That thought was far from the orange-haired Shinigami's mind, though. He silently seethed. He was shorter than he thought. He was taller than Orihime before. Now he was shorter than her! That at least had to be a difference of thirty centimeters!

"Where should we go, Kurosaki-kun?"

Orihime's gentle question jerked him out of his thoughts. "I dunno. I guess we should head to your house. I was walking you there anyway."

"Okay, but you should spend the night."

"What? Why?"

"How would your family react if they saw you like this? You should stay the night with me so that we can call Urahara tomorrow and see what he can do."

The orange-haired Shinigami sighed. There was no beating her logic. And that was something he thought he'd never say about Orihime. "Fine. But only for tonight, and we're seeing Urahara first thing tomorrow morning. Good thing it's Friday..."

They walked in silence for a moment. It was a comfortable silence, yet awkward at the same time. Ichigo just sifted through his thoughts, feeling oddly introspective at the moment. That guy appeared so suddenly, and left in the same way. And it was Orihime who actually drove him off. He didn't expect that. He was actually kind of impressed. That thought reminded the orange-haired Shinigami that Orihime was still there, supporting his weight. He broke the longstanding silence.

"Hey, Inoue."

"Yes, Kurosaki-kun?"

The orange-haired Shinigami's mouth twitched into a very slight smirk. "That was pretty cool what you did back there."

"What?"

"You sent Tsubaki right through that guy's chest, even broke his Zanpakutou. That's really good."

"Um... Thank you, Kurosaki-kun."

He couldn't help but wonder about the redness that crept onto her face. Could she be coming down with something? Eh. He wouldn't give it much thought. She seemed fine. And maybe he would be fine, too. This was probably all a dream. Aside from the sharp decrease in height, the different distributions of weight, and all that other crap, there was no sure sign he changed sex, right? It was probably just a dizzy spell. He hallucinated that guy that appeared, and now Orihime was carrying him because he was too dizzy to walk. Yeah, that was it.

But he couldn't disregard Orihime chasing that guy off, even if it really was just a hallucination. As his hardheaded friend supported his weight while they headed down the street, the orange-haired Shinigami couldn't help but think...

Hey, she's pretty cool.


	2. Dance 1: Up Is Down

Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach. Bleach is owned by Tite Kubo.

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Bleach

Abstract Gender

By _Cyberweasel89_

**Dance 1:** Up Is Down

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Oh god! There it was! It we getting closer! He couldn't move! The monster crept closer. A dark beast, with sharp white teeth and solid red eyes with a subtle glow. It crept forward on oversized arms and undersized legs. A black beast, its true shape unknown in the darkness. It was touching his leg now. But he still couldn't move! He was terrified, but he couldn't move! He couldn't get up, he couldn't run, he could shake it off. He couldn't do anything as it began climbing onto his form. It walked up his legs, it's skin rough and sharp. It scratched up his legs at it walked. It was standing on his stomach now. Now it was on his chest! It was standing on his chest, leaning over his face and gazing into his eyes with a sneer that sent shivers up and down his spine. The pure killing intent was incredible. No! The weight on his chest! He couldn't breathe! The creature raised an arm and shot it forward, grasping his neck. It's unseen claws, sharp as a rusty nail, dug themselves into his flesh, blood oozing out, warm on his cold skin. The creature! It was on his chest, crushing his lungs! He couldn't breathe! Next it was tightening its grip around his neck! It was aiming to suffocate him, if not crush his windpipe! He had to do something. It was about to kill him... But he still couldn't move. He couldn't even move his fingers or toes. He could only stare up at the solid red eyes that shot him a glare of pure hatred. It wanted to make him its prey. But no! He wouldn't be prey! He couldn't die here! But what could he do? He still couldn't move! He had to do something... anything...

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Ichigo shot open his eyes to find himself out of the dark abyss. Was it all a dream? Was it really just a nightmare?

Judging from the light that poured in from behind the curtains, it was almost sunrise. He must have just woken up. It seemed to be Orihime's apartment. But wait, why was everything upside down?

Ichigo lifted his head to find that he was lying on Orihime's sofa. His head was hanging off the edge, upside-down. He pulled himself upright, but was disrupted by the weight on his chest. Ah... That was it. The weight on his chest he felt in his dream. Last night wasn't a hallucination brought on by dizziness. He was still female. And his bust was still sizeable...

The orange-haired Shinigami sat up and pulled off the blanket draped over him to find his body bare. Which was probably a good thing, since he was completely drenched in a cold sweat. Looking down at his girl's body, he couldn't help but feel curious what it would feel like... but he fought off any urges to poke and prod. It was too soon. Maybe in a few... years.

Jesus Christ... Is this what Orihime dealt with? Did she have to fall asleep wondering if her breasts would suffocate her when she lay on her back? And if it was bad for him and Orihime, it must've been a death trap for Matsumoto.

Ichigo shook the thoughts from his head. He reached up to wipe the sweat from his brow, but recoiled upon feeling how soft and smooth his skin was. And he was even more appalled by how small and delicate his hand was.

So it was true. He really did have a girl's body. He was hoping that the transformation would wear off at some point. But even after sleeping, he was still female. Who was that guy? Could a Zanpakutou really have such a bizarre power? And why wasn't the effect canceled when the Zanpakutou was broken? Where'd that guy leave after Orihime broke his sword? Would this curse wear off sometime soon, or did it not have a time limit? Was it reversible, or was it permanent?

There were so many questions floating through Ichigo's head that he was glad when he heard a door open behind him. A welcome interruption. Turning, he saw Orihime standing there, dressed in what could only be pajamas. The kind consisting of a colorful button shirt and pants, with kiddish designs. Orihime's had some weird creature depicted on it in several places as a pattern. It was a purple ball with a large, single eye, two flaps above the eye almost like ears, and a flap behind it almost like a tail. Was it a cartoon character? It looked pretty cartoonish. Ichigo just couldn't place the origins.

"Morning, Kurosaki-kun!" Orihime greeting, a cheerful smile on her face. "Did you sleep well?"

The orange-haired Shinigami just grunted. "Ugh. You wouldn't believe-" he paused. Looking at her bright face, he realized he couldn't have her worrying about him. So he just grunted again, turning to look at the window. "Eh. I slept pretty good. Your couch is pretty comfy."

"Really? Any unusual dreams?"

"Nah. But man, how the hell do you sleep with these things?"

"Huh?" Her innocent confusion was almost too adorable to crush...

"I woke up and these things were suffocating me!" he pointed to his hefty chest for emphasis. But to the orange-haired Shinigami's intrigue, the girl just giggled.

"Maybe it was a bad idea to have you sleep like that. It's just that none of my PJs fit you, Kurosaki-kun."

"What? You callin' me short?"

She just giggled again. "No. You're just kind of... petite. But you could try wearing a bra. It helps, uuuummm... keep things in check."

Ichigo wondered if the look of disgust on his face was funny, because Orihime giggled again. "No way! I'm not wearin' a bra! I'm not some girl!"

"Okay, okay. But you might need to consider some support. Otherwise you'll be all over the place."

Ichigo just grunted. "Whatever. What's for breakfast?"

"Well, I was thinking of making one of my special-"

He interrupted her with a groan. "I'm not eatin' any of your..." he rethought his words. He couldn't let his frustration affect how he treated his friends. "I mean... I'm not really hungry. Can't we just go out for a big lunch later?"

Orihime blinked, a bewildered expression on her face. It softened, and she managed a small smile "Sure, Kurosaki-kun."

"Great, great." He sighed, happy that having to eat her breakfast was averted. "So when are we heading to Urahara's?"

The girl brought her hand to her chin in thought. "Umm... I guess when you get dressed."

The orange-haired Shinigami grunted, leaning back on the couch. "Great. Now I just need some clothes."

"But Kurosaki-kun. If my PJs won't fit you, I don't think my other clothes will."

"Are you sure, Inoue? Don't you have anything..." he cringed at the fact he had to admit this. "... smaller?"

Orihime must have noticed his discomfort, though Ichigo couldn't imagine how. "I might have some... tighter... clothes somewhere..." she said delicately.

"Worth a shot..." the orange-haired Shinigami decided with a sigh.

Orihime walked off back to her room, leaving Ichigo to his thoughts again. He tried not to think about the current situation, but he found he couldn't really help it. Would Urahara really be able to help him? He hoped so. No way would he stay like this. But what if he couldn't? What if Urahara couldn't help, and he had to stay this way? What would he tell Rukia and the others? What would he tell everyone at school? After everything that's happened, all his classmates knew that he was a Shinigami, so hopefully they could accept this. But that was assuming he would have to explain it to them, which he wasn't planning on. Urahara could fix this. He knew he could. At least, he hoped he could...

"Kurosaki-kun! I found some clothes for you!" Orihime called from her room, sounding quite pleased.

Ichigo grunted and stood up, but after just a few steps, he wobbled off balance and fell on his ass, which he just realize was now quite meatier than before. Uggghhh... This would take some getting used to... First step, walking...

**XXXXXXXXXX**

"Well, Ichigo? What do you think?" Orihime asked, sounding a bit too cheerful for Ichigo's comfort.

As for the orange-haired Shinigami, he looked as uncomfortable as he could be. The pants were almost okay. They were a little snug in the hips and ass, while the legs were way too long. He could deal with the snugness and roll up the legs, but the shirt... The sleeves were a bit longer than one expected from a t-shirt, while the chest was so tight he couldn't breathe.

"Orihime... You said these clothes were just tighter than your usual stuff..." Ichigo pointed out, his irritation clearly showing through.

"Um... Yeaaahhh…"

"But the sleeves and pant legs are way too small for you..."

"Um... Yeah?" she was clearly looking nervous.

"The sleeves and pant legs are a bit big on me, but the hips and chest are too small..."

"Uh… Yeah."

"Are these clothes from when you were younger?"

"Ummm... No?"

Ichigo was seething, but tried to contain his anger. "Why... the hell... are you having me wear... your baby clothes?"

"They're not my baby clothes. They're just from when I was younger..." Orihime defended.

"How much younger?"

"Um... When I was... twelve..." she explained in a tiny voice.

Ichigo clenched his fists, his knuckles turning white. Orihime clearly felt his anger, because she shrunk back, a nervous smile on her face.

"Am... I... really... that... short?" The orange-haired Shinigami growled.

"Um... maybe?"

Ichigo was about to explode with anger, but instead felt tears forming in his eyes. "Shit!" He ducked down to the ground to rub the wetness out.

"Kurosaki-kun? Are you okay?" the girl asked, clearly worried.

"Shut up, Inoue! I'm fine!"

Orihime shrunk back, gazing down at the ground. This went unnoticed by Ichigo.

"Ugh, dammit. These things move around too much! I can't even crouch down without them gettin' in the way!"

"Maybe you should try a-"

"I'M NOT WEARING A BRA!"

Orhime shrunk back, tears forming in her eyes. She left quickly while Ichigo was rubbing his eyes so he wouldn't notice.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

The bathroom. Orihime was there, sitting on the floor with her legs pulled up against her chest. Tears were streaming down her face, while her Shun Shun Rikka hovered around her, trying to figure out how to calm her down.

"What should we do?" Baigon wondered aloud.

"Who cares? It's her own fault for bein' so weak." Tsubaki dismissed.

"That's not very nice, Tsubaki..." Ayame scolded, though her gaze was directed downward sadly.

"It's not nice, but I suppose he has a point."

"What do you mean, Hinagiku?" Lily asked, preparing to scold him should she need to.

"Well... She just needs to tough it up, I suppose."

Lily was about to pound his head, but Shunou stopped her. "Easy, Lily." He soothed, gently grabbing her arm. "I think what Hinagiku means is that Orihime-chan's not fully considering Ichigo's situation."

Everyone turned to look at the healer, even Orihime with tears in her eyes.

"Continue, Shunou-kun." Ayame urged.

Shunou gave his best friendly smile. Hopefully it would disarm them should they disagree. "Well, let's establish something first. Orihime, aside from you liking Ichigo, what is she to you? A friend?"

The girl sniffled, responding with the answer to a question she'd pondered many times before. "Ichigo's not a friend. He's not anything. He's just Ichigo."

Ah, excellent. Exactly what he expected. "And she'll always be Ichigo, right?"

"Well, yes, of course."

"That means that even if he's a girl, he's still Ichigo, right?"

"Right..."

"That's where the problem lies. You're forgetting that your Kurosaki-kun is going through... well, something pretty big right now. How would you feel if you found yourself a boy?"

"Well, that would actually be kind of-"

The healer raised up his hands and waved them frantically to stop her, laughing nervously. "Wait, wait, wait. I forgot who I'm talking to here. Never mind that. What I mean is that even though you see Ichigo just how you've always seen her, Ichigo herself doesn't. She went through a massive change in her life. I mean, imagine what'll happen if she gets her per-"

"Shunou!"

"Uh... Sorry, Lily. Sorry, Ayame. Best not go there." The healer laughed nervously, rubbing the back of his head. "Anyway, this change for Ichigo is affecting the very way she functions. She's much shorter, she's having trouble keeping her balance, I could go on. But aside from that, the way she views herself is different. All this puts her in a really vulnerable place. So she's snapping at you a bit. You're taking it personally when you really shouldn't, Orihime. She may be the same old Ichigo to you, but she's going through..."

"A rough patch?"

"Yes, thank you, Baigon. Yes, a rough patch. She's so wrapped up in the complexity of her situation that she's forgetting you're trying to help her. But I'm sure that so long as you're there for her, she'll appreciate it. A little kindness from a friend is what anyone needs at times like these."

"Times like these?" Tsubaki smirked. "How often does this happen, Shunou?"

The healer fought to hide his irritation behind his signature friendly smile. "I'm just being nice, Tsubaki."

"Thank you, everyone..."

All six turned to Orihime, who was getting to her feet.

"It's nice to know that I have all of you to turn to at times like these. Kurosaki-kun doesn't have that luxury..."

The six stared blankly at her as she walked out of the bathroom, presumably to return to Ichigo.

"That was pretty smooth, Shunou." Lily pointed out with a smirk. "And here I thought you were just a blonde pretty boy."

Shunou blushed, while Tsubaki burst out into laughter. Sometimes he hated having to be the one to represent them when dealing with their master... Well, aside from Tsubaki, but he was prone to violence...

**XXXXXXXXXX**

Ichigo couldn't help but seethe. If Orihime didn't have any clothes that would fit him, how the hell could he go out and get Urahara to fix him? Dammit, why did he have to be so short as a... ugh, a girl.

"Kurosaki-kun?"

"What now, Inoue?"

He flinched a little when he turned around to see the girl. Had she been crying? She looked a bit red...

"I have something you might be able to wear..."

The orange-haired Shinigami waited patiently while the girl went searching through her closest.

"See, I have shirts that can almost fit you, but the sleeves won't fit. I don't have many pants that could fit you without being too long in the legs but I think I might have something that can do both so long as you don't mind some... um, skin. And I know you won't wear a skirt..."

Ichigo crossed his arms in annoyance. "I'm not wearin' any clothes from when you were twelve, Inoue."

"Oh, these aren't my clothes from when I was younger."

"They're not?"

"Nope!"

The girl rummaged a bit more before tossing something white to the orange-haired Shinigami. He unraveled the bundle to take a look at it.

"A tank top?"

"Yep. When I bought it, it was too big for me. It should fit your, um… bust pretty well, while you can tuck the extra length into these."

The girl next tossed him a bundle of blue denim. Ichigo spread them out to see they were a pair of shorts.

"Shorts?"

"Yep." Orihime confirmed, rising from the closet and patting her pajama bottoms off. "When I bought those, I forgot they would shrink in the wash. On you, they should come down just to your knees."

Ichigo was unsure, but figured it was better than walkin' around in the buff. He reached to brace himself on the bed while he slipped a leg in the shorts. Orihime turned around to give him some privacy. That was kinda weird. I mean, they were both girls here, right?

"Okay, done, I guess..."

The girl turned around, while Ichigo rubbed his arm uneasily. "I dunno, Inoue. It feels kind of... girly."

Everything was the right size, so long as he tucked the length of the tanktop in the shorts and tightened the waist well, but it all felt odd... Even with his male body, he had never worn shorts beyond swim trunks, let alone tank tops. And this one showed such a deep cleavage that he was uneasily looking up as opposed to down.

"Ichigo, you look great!" the girl chirped with delight, clasping her hands near her face. It only made the orange-haired Shinigami all the more uneasy.

"What about shoes?"

"Um... Oh!"

The girl began rummaging through her closet again.

"I don't want any baby shoes, Inoue." he warned.

"Don't worry. These aren't baby shoes, Kurosaki-kun."

This satisfied him a bit... up until the girl tossed him some sandals that were clearly too small to even be from a few years ago. The orange-haired Shinigami sent her a hard scowl.

"It's okay, Kurosaki-kun." The girl uneasily urged. "They aren't mine. Rukia gave them to me."

He sighed, again defeated by her logic. "Well, if you say so..."

It didn't occur to Ichigo to ask why Orihime had Rukia's sandals...

Slipping them on, he was relieved that they weren't flip-flops. They had two straps to fit them to the foot wearing them. They were black, which Ichigo found unusual for a girl's sandals. When he was done, he stood to look at his friend's reaction. She merely smiled brightly and gave him a thumbs-up.

"Great, great. Now can we go see Urahara, Inoue?"

The girl nodded, still smiling warmly. "Just let me get dressed, Kurosaki-kun. Then we'll head straight to Urahara-san's shop."

Sighing, the orange-haired Shinigami headed back to wait on the couch. He could just go himself, but he was afraid he might lose his balance and trip along the way, unable to get back up...

**XXXXXXXXXX**

"Okay, Kurosaki-kun!"

Ichigo sat forward on the couch and turned to look at his friend. The girl was dressed in a loose orange skirt with a floral print, along with a matching v-neck short-sleeved top with a similar floral print. What was with her and flowers on her clothes?

"We ready, Inoue?"

Orihime smiled and nodded. "Yes. Let's go!"

Sighing, the orange-haired Shinigami got himself to his feet and went to follow Orihime out the door. Just as he was following her past the doorframe, he found his balance failing once again. For a moment, the only thing on his mind was 'Shit!'

He was surprised when he didn't hit the hard floor. Instead he found himself floating, albeit his feet still on the floor and leaning forward. Forcing his eyes open, he looked up to see Orihime standing over him. She had miraculously caught him... which would've been pretty cool had her hands not been... on his breasts...

"Uh... Thanks, Inoue." The orange-haired Shinigami mumbled as a blush came to his face.

The girl hoisted him to his feet. "N-No problem, Kurosaki-kun."

As the two left, Ichigo couldn't help but feel uncomfortable from the warm and fuzzy feeling in his breasts and nethers. The kind of warm and fuzzy feeling you got when you were lightly... aroused. Damn, were breasts really that sensitive? I mean, all she did was press them hard and rub them a little when she lifted him up. He was tempted to give a poke, but the reminder that they were his own breasts quickly snuffed out that idea.

Simultaneously, he had to wonder why Orihime was staring at the palms of her hands with a look on her face like she wanted to scrub them clean... He'd recognized that face whenever Yuzu saw the sink full of dirty dishes... weird.

Orihime, on the other hand, was thinking something completely different:

Kurosaki-kun's...

Are bigger...


End file.
